Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civilian functions of government, especially in response to a temporary emergency such as invasion or major disaster, or in an occupied territory.[1][2]

Martial law can be used by governments to enforce their rule over the public, as seen in multiple countries listed below. Such incidents may occur after a coup d'état (Thailand in 2006 and 2014, and Egypt in 2013); when threatened by popular protest (China, Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, 2009's Iranian Green Movement that led to the takeover by Revolutionary Guards); to suppress political opposition (Poland in 1981); or to stabilize insurrections or perceived insurrections (Canada, The October Crisis of 1970). Martial law may be declared in cases of major natural disasters; however, most countries use a different legal construct, such as a state of emergency.

By country

Australia

The Black War was a period of violent conflict between British colonists and Aboriginal Australians in Tasmania from the mid-1820s to 1832. With an escalation of violence in the late 1820s, Lieutenant-Governor George Arthur declared martial law in November 1828—effectively providing legal immunity for killing Aboriginal people.[3] It would remain in force for more than three years, the longest period of martial law in Australian history.

Brunei

Brunei has been under a martial law since a rebellion occurred on 8 December 1962 known as the Brunei Revolt and was put down by British troops from Singapore. The Sultan of Brunei, Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah, is presently the head of state and also the Minister of Defense and Commander in Chief of Royal Brunei Armed Forces

China

Egypt

Martial law in Egypt: Egyptian-flagged tanks man an apparent checkpoint just outside the midtown Tahrir area during the 2011 Egyptian revolution.

In Egypt, a State of Emergency has been in effect almost continuously since 1967. Following the assassination of President Anwar el-Sadat in 1981, a state of emergency was declared. Egypt has been under state of emergency ever since; the Parliament has renewed the emergency laws every three years since they were imposed. The legislation was extended in 2003 and were due to expire at the end of May 2006; plans were in place to replace it with new anti-terrorism laws. But after the Dahab bombings in April of that year, state of emergency was renewed for another two years.[5][6] In May 2008 there was a further extension to June 2010.[7] In May 2010, the state of emergency was further extended, albeit with a promise from the government to be applied only to 'Terrorism and Drugs' suspects.

A State of Emergency gives military courts the power to try civilians and allows the government to detain for renewable 45-day periods and without court orders anyone deemed to be threatening state security. Public demonstrations are banned under the legislation. On 10 February 2011, the ex-president of Egypt, Hosni Mubarak, promised the deletion of the relevant constitutional article that gives legitimacy to State of Emergency in an attempt to please the mass number of protesters that demanded him to resign. On 11 February 2011, the president stepped down and the vice president Omar Suleiman de facto introduced the country to martial law when transferring all civilian powers from the presidential institution to the military institution. It meant that the presidential executive powers, the parliamentary legislative powers and the judicial powers all transferred directly into the military system which may delegate powers back and forth to any civilian institution within its territory.

The military issued in its third announcement the "end of the State of Emergency as soon as order is restored in Egypt". Before martial law, the Egyptian parliament under the constitution had the civilian power to declare a State of Emergency. When in martial law, the military gained all powers of the state, including to dissolve the parliament and suspend the constitution as it did in its fifth announcement. Under martial law, the only legal framework within the Egyptian territory is the numbered announcements from the military. These announcements could for instance order any civilian laws to come back into force. The military announcements (communiques) are the de facto only current constitution and legal framework for the Egyptian territory. It means that all affairs of the state are bound by the Geneva Conventions.

Indonesia

On May 18, 2003, during a military activity in Aceh, under the order of the president, Indonesian Army Chief imposed martial law for a period of six months to offensively eliminate the Acehnese separatists.

Iran

On September 7, 1978, in response to public demonstrations protesting the perceived government involvement in the death of the son of Ayatollah Khomeini, Mostafa Khomeini, ShahMohammad Reza Pahlavi appointed Chief of Army Staff General Gholam Ali Oveisi as the military governor of the capital city of Tehran.[8] On September 8, the government effectively declared martial law on the capital along with several other cities throughout the country, after which further protests erupted that lead to the army opening fire on a group of protesters in Tehran's Jaleh Square on the same day. Estimates on the number of casualties vary; However, according to Iranian human rights activist Emadeddin Baghi, the number of people killed was 88 of which 64 were gunned down in Jaleh Square[9]. The day is often referred to as Black Friday. Unable to control the unrest, the Shah dissolved the civil government headed by Prime Minister Jafar Sharif-Emami on November 6 and appointed General Gholam Reza Azhari as the prime minister whom ultimately failed in his efforts to restore order to the country. As he was preparing to leave the country, the Shah dissolved the military government and appointed Shapour Bakhtiar, a reformist critic of his rule, as the new prime minister on January 4, 1979. Bakhtiar's government fell on February 11 and gave rise to the Islamic Republic and the creation of a new constitution.[8]

The current Irish Constitution allows for martial law if the government declares a state of emergency, however capital punishment is prohibited in all circumstances, including a state of emergency.

Israel

Military administrative government was in effect from 1949 to 1966 over some geographical areas of Israel having large Arab populations, primarily the Negev, Galilee, and the Triangle. The residents of these areas were subject to martial law.[12][13] The Israeli army enforced strict residency rules. Any Arab not registered in a census taken during November 1948 was deported.[14] Permits from the military governor had to be procured to travel more than a given distance from a person's registered place of residence, and curfew, administrative detentions, and expulsions were common.[12] Although the military administration was officially for geographical areas, and not people, its restrictions were seldom enforced on the Jewish residents of these areas. In the 1950s, martial law ceased to be in effect for those Arab citizens living in predominantly Jewish cities, but remained in place in all Arab localities within Israel until 1966.

Following the 1967 war, in which the Israeli army occupied the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Golan Heights in Syria, and Sinai Peninsula in Egypt, martial law over the Palestinian population as well as the Jordanian, Syrian, and Egyptian populations in these areas was put in place. In 1993, Israel agreed to give autonomy to the people of Gaza and disengaged militarily from Gaza from 2005 until 2007, when a military blockade was put in place on Gaza in response to the election of Hamas to the local government.

During the 2006 Lebanon war, martial law was declared by Defense Minister Amir Peretz over the north of the country. The Israel Defense Forces were granted the authority to issue instructions to civilians, and to close down offices, schools, camps and factories in cities considered under threat of attack, as well as to impose curfews on cities in the north.[15]

Instructions of the Home Front Command are obligatory under martial law, rather than merely recommended.[15] The order signed by Peretz was in effect for 48 hours[15] and was extended by the Cabinet and the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee over the war's duration.[citation needed]

Mauritius

Mauritius is known as being a "Westminster" style of democracy but a peculiar system that was imposed in Mauritius during a period of civil unrest in 1968 as an emergency measure, has never been repealed and is still used by the police force there to this day.[16] The system, which has no apparent foundation in the constitution of Mauritius, enables the police to arrest without having to demonstrate reasonable suspicion that a crime has been carried out but simply on the submission of "provisional information" to the magistrate. The accused is then placed on remand or bail and required to report to the police or the court on a regular basis, sometimes every day. There are examples of this system being used to intimidate or coerce individuals in civil litigations.[17]

Pakistan

Martial law was declared in Pakistan on 7 October 1958, by President Iskander Mirza who then appointed General Muhammad Ayub Khan as the Chief Martial Law Administrator and Aziz Ahmad as Secretary General and Deputy Chief Martial Law Administrator. However, three weeks later General Ayub—who had been openly questioning the authority of the government before the imposition of martial law—deposed Iskandar Mirza on 27 October 1958 and assumed the presidency that practically formalized the militarization of the political system in Pakistan. Four years later a new document, Constitution of 1962, was adopted. The second martial law was imposed on 25 March 1969, when President Ayub Khan abrogated the Constitution of 1962 and handed over power to the Army Commander-in-Chief, General Agha Mohammad Yahya Khan. On assuming the presidency, General Yahya Khan acceded to popular demands by abolishing the one-unit system in West Pakistan and ordered general elections on the principle of one man one vote.

The third was imposed by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the first civilian to hold this post in Pakistan after the Bangladesh Liberation War. On 21 December 1971, Bhutto took this post as well as that of President.[18]

The fourth was imposed by the General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq on 5 July 1977. After several tumultuous years, which witnessed the secession of East Pakistan, politician Zulfikar Ali Bhutto took over in 1971 as the first civilian martial law administrator in recent history, imposing selective martial law in areas hostile to his rule, such as the country's largest province, Balochistan. Following widespread civil disorder, General Zia overthrew Bhutto and imposed martial law in its totality on July 5, 1977, in a bloodless coup d'état. Unstable areas were brought under control through indirect military action, such as Balochistan under Martial Law Governor, General Rahimuddin Khan. Civilian government resumed in 1988 following General Zia's death in an aircraft crash.

On November 3, 2007, President General Musharraf declared the state of emergency in the country which is claimed to be equivalent to the state of martial law as the constitution of Pakistan of 1973 was suspended, and the Chief Justices of the Supreme Court were fired.

On November 12, 2007, Musharraf issued some amendments in the Military Act, which gave the armed forces some additional powers.

The policy of martial law was initially well received, but it eventually proved unpopular as the military's human rights abuses (e.g. use of torture in intelligence gathering, forced disappearances), along with the decadence and excess of the Marcos family and their allies, had emerged. Coupled with economic downturns, these factors fermented dissent in various sectors (e.g. the urban middle class) that crystallised with the assassination of jailed oppositionist senatorBenigno Aquino, Jr. in 1983, and widespread fraud in the 1986 snap elections. These eventually led to the 1986 People Power Revolution that ousted Marcos and forced him into exile in Hawaii where he died in 1989; his rival presidential candidate and Aquino's widow, Corazon, was installed as his successor.

During this 9-year period, curfews were implemented as a safety measure. Majority of radio and television networks were suspended. Journalists who were accused of speaking against the government were taken as political prisoners, some of them to be physically abused and tortured by the authorities.

Others have stated that the implementation of Martial Law was taken advantage by the Marcos regime. Billion pesos worth of property and ill-gotten wealth was said to be acquired by Marcos' consort, First LadyImelda Marcos. This alleged money laundering issue was brought back recently, particularly in the PiliPinas Debates 2016 for the recently held Philippine Presidential Elections on May 9, 2016. Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr., Marcos' son, ran for the Vice Presidency and lost.

On 4 December 2009, President Arroyo officially placed the Province of Maguindanao under a state of martial law through Proclamation № 1959.[19] As with the last imposition, the declaration suspended the writ of habeas corpus in the province.[20] The announcement came days after hundreds of government troops were sent to the province to raid the armories of the powerful Ampatuan clan. The Ampatuans were implicated in the massacre of 58 persons, including women from the rival Mangudadatu clan, human rights lawyers, and 31 media workers. Cited as one of the bloodiest incidents of political violence in Philippine history, the massacre was condemned worldwide as the worst loss of life of media professionals in one day.[19]

Poland

Martial law was introduced in Communist Poland on December 13, 1981 by Generals Czesław Kiszczak and Wojciech Jaruzelski to prevent democratic opposition from gaining popularity and political power in the country. Thousands of people linked to democratic opposition, including Lech Wałęsa, were arbitrarily arrested and detained. About 100 deaths are attributed to the martial law, including 9 miners shot by the police during the pacification of striking Wujek Coal Mine. The martial law was lifted July 22, 1983. Polish society is divided in opinion on the necessity of introduction of the martial law, which is viewed by some as a lesser evil compared to alleged Soviet military intervention.

Switzerland

There are no provisions for martial law as such in Switzerland. Under the Army Law of 1995,[25] the Army can be called upon by cantonal (state) authorities for assistance (Assistenzdienst). This regularly happens in the case of natural disasters or special protection requirements (e.g., for the World Economic Forum in Davos). This assistance generally requires parliamentary authorization, though, and takes place in the regular legal framework and under the civilian leadership of the cantonal authorities. On the other hand, the federal authorities are authorized to use the Army to enforce law and order when the Cantons no longer can or want to do so (Ordnungsdienst). With this came many significant points of reference. This power largely fell into disuse after World War II.[26]

Syria

Still present martial law regime since the 1963 Syrian coup d'état is the longest ranging period of active martial law.[disputed – discuss]

Taiwan

Following World War II, the island of Taiwan came back to China's control given the impending withdrawal of Japanese forces and colonial government. Martial law was declared in 1949 despite the democracy promised in the Constitution of the Republic of China (the Republic of China refused to implement the constitution on Taiwan until after 1949). After the Nationalist-led Republic of China government lost control of the mainland to the Communist Party of China and retreated to Taiwan in 1949, the perceived need to suppress Communist activities in Taiwan was utilised as a rationale for not lifting martial law until thirty-eight years later in 1987, just prior to the death of then President Chiang Ching-kuo.

Today, still present martial law systems like in Syria (since the 1963 Syrian coup d'état) or in the West Bank (since the 1967 Six-Day War with Israel) have surpassed Taiwan as longer ranging periods of active martial law.[citation needed]

Turkey

Since the foundation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923 the military conducted three coups d'état and announced martial law. Martial law between 1978 and 1983 was replaced by a State of emergency in a limited number of provinces that lasted until November 2002. On July 15, 2016 a section of the military in Turkey attempted a coup(failed) and said to have implied martial law in a broadcast on their national television TRT.[29]

Ukraine

The restrictions from martial law were defined in a 2015 law "On the Legal Regime of Martial Law". The president decides on the declaration of martial law and then parliament must approve it.[30][31]

On 26 November 2018, lawmakers in the Ukraine Parliament overwhelmingly backed the imposition of martial law along Ukraine's coastal regions and those bordering Russia and Transnistria, a breakaway state of Moldova which has Russian troops stationed in its territory, in response to the firing upon and seizure of Ukrainian naval ships by Russia near the Crimean peninsula a day earlier. A total of 276 lawmakers in Kiev backed the measure, which took effect on 28 November 2018 and will automatically expire in 30 days.[32]

SFR Yugoslavia

During the Yugoslav Wars in 1991, a "State of Direct War Threat" was declared. Although forces from the whole SFRY were included in this conflict, martial law was never announced, but after secession, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina declared martial law. On March 23, 1999, a "State of Direct War Threat" was declared in Yugoslavia, following the possibility of NATO air-strikes. The day after strikes began, martial law was declared, which lasted until June 1999, although strikes ended on June 10, following Kumanovo Treaty.[citation needed]

The martial law concept in the United States is closely tied with the right of habeas corpus, which is in essence the right to a hearing on lawful imprisonment, or more broadly, the supervision of law enforcement by the judiciary. The ability to suspend habeas corpus is related to the imposition of martial law.[33] Article 1, Section 9 of the US Constitution states, "The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it." There have been many instances of the use of the military within the borders of the United States, such as during the Whiskey Rebellion and in the South during the Civil Rights Movement, but these acts are not tantamount to a declaration of martial law. The distinction must be made as clear as that between martial law and military justice: deployment of troops does not necessarily mean that the civil courts cannot function, and that is one of the keys, as the Supreme Court noted, to martial law.

^Simon Apiku. Egypt to lift 25-year-old emergency laws. Middle East On-line, 23 March 2006."Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2006-08-24. Retrieved 2006-04-16.CS1 maint: Archived copy as title (link)

^Joelle Bassoul. Egypt renews state of emergency for two years. Middle East On-line, 1 May 2005. [1]

^Adam Morrow and Khaled Moussa al-Omrani. EGYPT: Despair Over Two More Years of Martial Law.Inter Press Service News Agency."Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-05-18. Retrieved 2009-06-20.CS1 maint: Archived copy as title (link)

^ a b"The Iranian Revolution | King Pahlavi (the Shah) against Dissent". MacroHistory: World History. Retrieved 2010-12-23.

^"The authorities did not recognise the legality of residence in the country of anyone not registered during the November 1948 census and issued with an identity card or military pass. Anyone who had left the country for any reason before the census, and was not registered and in possession of a card or pass was regarded as an "absentee". If he subsequently infiltrated back into the country (including to his home village), he was regarded "as illegal" and could be summarily deported. The IDF repeatedly raided villages, sorted out legal from illegal residents and, usually, expelled the "returnees."" Morris, Benny (1987) The birth of the Palestinian refugee problem, 1947–1949. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-33028-9. p.240

^Pakorn Nilprapunt (April 2, 2012). "Martial Law, B.E. 2457 (1914) unofficial translation" (PDF). Thailand Law Forum. Office of the Council of State (Thailand). Archived from the original (PDF) on May 30, 2014. Retrieved May 30, 2014. Reference to Thai legislation in any jurisdiction shall be to the Thai version only. This translation has been made so as to establish correct understanding about this Act to the foreigners.

^G. Edward White (2012). Law in American History: Volume 1: From the Colonial Years Through the Civil War. Oxford University Press. p. 442. ISBN 978-0-19-972314-0. As the above details suggest, the imposition of martial law and the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus are related, but do not perform identical functions.

Further reading

Macomb, Alexander, Major General of the United States Army, The Practice of Courts Martial, (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1841) 154 pages.

Macomb, Alexander, Major General of the United States Army, A Treatise on Martial Law, and Courts-Martial as Practiced in the United States. (Charleston: J. Hoff, 1809), republished (New York: Lawbook Exchange, June 2007). ISBN 1-58477-709-5, 978-1-58477-709-0.

Rehnquist, William H. (1998). All the Laws but One: Civil Liberties in Wartime. New York: William Morrow & Co. ISBN 0-688-05142-1.